Race/Related: Are you of Middle Eastern or North African descent?

We are pursuing a project on how people of Middle Eastern and North African descent in the U.S. think about their racial and ethnic identities. [View in browser](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP4QpAWh0dHBzOi8vbWVzc2FnaW5nLWN1c3RvbS1uZXdzbGV0dGVycy5ueXRpbWVzLmNvbS90ZW1wbGF0ZS9vYWt2Mj9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZwcm9kdWN0Q29kZT1SUiZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXJpPW55dCUzQSUyRiUyRm5ld3NsZXR0ZXIlMkYyMzk4MzViZi1kYWFlLTVkZGItYTE2Ni1iNTU2ZmY0YmJlNTImdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~)|[nytimes.com](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0SxaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~)[Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-ad-marquee) ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9MjA3NTgwJmxpPVJSJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1SUl8yMDIyMTAwMVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ [More Race/Related](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0S_aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vc3BvdGxpZ2h0L3JhY2U_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) October 1, 2022 Why We Are Surveying the MENA Community in the U.S. [Author Headshot](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TAaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vYnkva2FyZW4tenJhaWNrP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) By [Karen Zraick](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TAaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vYnkva2FyZW4tenJhaWNrP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) Reporter, Metro I was thrilled when I heard that two of my colleagues in the Graphics department, Denise Lu and Haeyoun Park, were pursuing a project on how people of Middle Eastern and North African descent in the United States think about their racial and ethnic identities. I’m of Lebanese and Irish descent and have wanted to pursue a similar story for years. I also wondered what had prompted their interest. This is not something that has come up a lot in New York Times coverage. But there was some [discussion](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0T0aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy8yMDIyLzAyLzE3LzEwNzkxODE0NzgvdXMtY2Vuc3VzLW1pZGRsZS1lYXN0ZXJuLXdoaXRlLW5vcnRoLWFmcmljYW4tbWVuYT9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) in recent years about the possibility of a new U.S. Census category, as well as new scholarship on the subject. People of Middle Eastern and North African ancestry are currently classified as white, without a box to check for MENA ethnicity, which advocacy groups and elected officials have [increasingly questioned](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP4RGAWh0dHBzOi8vb3ZlcnNpZ2h0LmhvdXNlLmdvdi9zaXRlcy9kZW1vY3JhdHMub3ZlcnNpZ2h0LmhvdXNlLmdvdi9maWxlcy8yMDIyLTA2LTE0LkNCTSUyMFRsYWliJTIwZXQlMjBhbC4lMjB0byUyMFlvdW5nLU9NQiUyMGFuZCUyMFNhbnRvcy1VU0NCJTIwcmUlMjBNRU5BJTIwQ2Vuc3VzJTIwRklOQUwucGRmP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) as they feel the existing option does not fit many people’s lived experiences. During the Obama administration, the government had done [extensive](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TnaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cyLmNlbnN1cy5nb3YvYWJvdXQvcGFydG5lcnMvY2ljL2NvbmZlcmVuY2UvcmFjZWFuZGV0aG5pY3R5X3Jpb3MucGRmP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) research into whether to create a MENA box and how to go about it. It’s a complicated endeavor: We’re talking about a huge and diverse region, and there’s no universal agreement about which countries fit into the category. There are many ethnicities, languages, religions and skin tones. But the same is true for other categories that do exist on the census, and having the box can bring advantages, like increased federal funding for groups that serve MENA-heritage communities. What seemed like momentum toward creating a box came to halt during the Trump years — but it may be back on the table now. In June, the [country’s chief statistician, Karin Orvis, said the government](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP4SEAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LndoaXRlaG91c2UuZ292L29tYi9icmllZmluZy1yb29tLzIwMjIvMDYvMTUvcmV2aWV3aW5nLWFuZC1yZXZpc2luZy1zdGFuZGFyZHMtZm9yLW1haW50YWluaW5nLWNvbGxlY3RpbmctYW5kLXByZXNlbnRpbmctZmVkZXJhbC1kYXRhLW9uLXJhY2UtYW5kLWV0aG5pY2l0eS8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmZmJjbGlkPUl3QVIzSVl4c0dSdEZvQS1fRnlzZ0xWd3RNWGg2SWNzdFA4MmVKdDJocXZzdG4yZFBiNzhmcEIzQzVpNG8maW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) was looking at how it collects race and ethnicity data and would revise its standards by summer 2024. But the bureaucratic back-and-forth is only a small part of the story. Denise, Haeyoun and I have teamed up on a long-term project on this subject, and what we really want to explore is how people in this category grapple with questions around race, ethnicity, identity and belonging. This week we [published a survey](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0T4aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vaW50ZXJhY3RpdmUvMjAyMi8wOS8yOS91cy9taWRkbGUtZWFzdGVybi1ub3J0aC1hZnJpY2FuLXJhY2Utc3VydmV5Lmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) on this subject, and we’ll contact some of the respondents for in-depth interviews for a series of future articles. We’d be very grateful if you share the survey with anyone who might want to take it, and be in touch with any feedback. Thanks for reading, and we look forward to hearing from you. [Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-universal-0) ADVERTISEMENT ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9MTc0MTQ5JmxpPVJSJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1SUl8yMDIyMTAwMVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ Elizabeth Nsele, daughter of the late Solomon Linda, holds a photo of her father, at left with the Evening Birds musical group, at her home in Soweto in 2006.Naashon Zalk for The New York Times What Does Cultural Appropriate Really Mean? By Ligaya Mishan T Writer at Large IN 1939, SOLOMON Linda, a Zulu musician who grew up herding cattle in drought-prone Msinga in South Africa, improvised a few notes at what was then Johannesburg’s (and sub-Saharan Africa’s and possibly the continent’s) lone recording studio. As the South African journalist Rian Malan chronicled in [a 2000 feature](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP4QPAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnJvbGxpbmdzdG9uZS5jb20vZmVhdHVyZS9pbi10aGUtanVuZ2xlLWluc2lkZS10aGUtbG9uZy1oaWRkZW4tZ2VuZWFsb2d5LW9mLXRoZS1saW9uLXNsZWVwcy10b25pZ2h0LTEwODI3NC8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) for Rolling Stone, Linda and his group, the Evening Birds, were on the third take of a song that had more sounds than words, with the five backup voices split in harmony but one in rhythm, steady and inexorable, and Linda’s high, clean falsetto soaring above, until he uttered into being the musical phrase that would soon make its way to every corner of the world, albeit with lyrics he never wrote: “In the jungle, the quiet jungle, the lion sleeps tonight.” Pressed onto a 78 r.p.m. disc and titled “[Mbube](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TEaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cueW91dHViZS5jb20vd2F0Y2g_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmdj1tcnJRVDRXa2JORVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~)” ( “Lion”), the song sold around 100,000 copies and made Linda a local star. But by the 1950s, after the all-white National Party government had codified segregation into the system of apartheid in 1948, he was working a janitorial job at the record company’s warehouse and had signed over the copyright of the song for 10 shillings, roughly the equivalent of $41.80 today. (Whether he understood the terms of the contract is unclear, as he could not read or write.) In the United States, the song was rejiggered for white singers who couldn’t quite manage the beat but saw their perky doo-wop arrangements climb the charts nevertheless. Eventually, Disney took notice; Linda’s lilting lullaby is arguably the heart of “The Lion King.” Record executives interviewed by Malan estimated that, as of 2000, Linda could’ve earned $15 million in revenues and royalties. Instead, when he died of kidney failure at age 53 in 1962, he was buried a pauper in an unmarked grave. (His descendants reached an [out-of-court settlement](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0T9aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAwNi8wMy8yMi93b3JsZC9hZnJpY2EvaW4tdGhlLWp1bmdsZS10aGUtdW5qdXN0LWp1bmdsZS1hLXNtYWxsLXZpY3RvcnkuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) with Disney in 2006.) [Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-universal-1) ADVERTISEMENT ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9MjA3NTc3JmxpPVJSJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1SUl8yMDIyMTAwMVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ A fairly straightforward story of exploitation, no? It’s almost reassuring in its clarity: Someone created something beautiful and someone else took it, passed it off as their own and got rich because of it. The race and class differentials — a poor Black man living under an oppressive regime versus slick white record producers in the booming postwar West — simply underscore the imbalance of power. And yet in the ’90s, when a few of these producers were squabbling among themselves over rights to the song, one of them tried to make a case that the original tune was not the product of Linda’s individual imagination but a traditional Zulu melody: a cultural artifact, like the Scottish Highlands air behind “Morning Has Broken” (immortalized by the British singer Cat Stevens in [a 1972 single](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TEaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cueW91dHViZS5jb20vd2F0Y2g_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmdj11WkFzZkIxTnAtOFcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~)) and the Appalachian coal miners’ ballad “The House of the Rising Sun” (a hit for the British band [the Animals in 1964](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TEaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cueW91dHViZS5jb20vd2F0Y2g_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmdj00LTQzbExLYXFCUVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~)), that belonged to no one and thus everyone. “After all, what was a folk song?” Malan writes. “Who owned it? It was just out there, like a wild horse or a tract of virgin land on an unconquered continent.” In the case of “Mbube,” there was proof that Linda wrote the notes. (English lyrics were added in 1961 by the American songwriters George David Weiss, Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore.) But what if it had, in fact, been a traditional Zulu song? Should that have made it fair game, even though it came not from the Western traditions that these producers shared but from a culture of which they and much of their audience likely knew very little — from a people who were suppressed and dispossessed under colonialism? Copyright law (within human history, a fairly recent development) tells us that individuals have ownership over what they create and are harmed when others copy from them without permission, attribution or compensation. But can a more amorphous collective, a culture, likewise be harmed? Read the rest of the story [here](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8zMC90LW1hZ2F6aW5lL2N1bHR1cmFsLWFwcHJvcHJpYXRpb24uaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~). EDITORS’ PICKS We publish many articles that touch on race. Here are several you shouldn’t miss. [[Article Image] Paul Bergen/Redferns, via Getty Images](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TkaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yOS9hcnRzL211c2ljL2Nvb2xpby1nYW5nc3Rhcy1wYXJhZGlzZS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [The Story of ‘Gangsta’s Paradise,’ Coolio’s Biggest Hit The 1995 song changed the rapper’s life, bringing a rush of stardom — along with a new level of success that he was unable to match again. By Julia Jacobs](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TkaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yOS9hcnRzL211c2ljL2Nvb2xpby1nYW5nc3Rhcy1wYXJhZGlzZS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [[Article Image] Lelanie Foster for The New York Times](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8zMC9hcnRzL2Rlc2lnbi9tYXJpbHluLW5hbmNlLWZlc3RhYy1sYXN0LWRheS1pbi1sYWdvcy5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [A Shining Moment of Pan-African Promise Marilyn Nance was 23 when she photographed FESTAC ’77, the immense gathering of Black artists in Nigeria. In ‘Last Day in Lagos,’ she shares her archive. By Siddhartha Mitter](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8zMC9hcnRzL2Rlc2lnbi9tYXJpbHluLW5hbmNlLWZlc3RhYy1sYXN0LWRheS1pbi1sYWdvcy5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [[Article Image] Salvador Espinoza for The New York Times](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yOC9ueXJlZ2lvbi9ueWMtdGVzdC1zY29yZXMtcGFuZGVtaWMuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) [N.Y.C. Children Held Ground in Reading, but Lagged in Math, Tests Show The first standardized test results that capture how most city schoolchildren did during the pandemic offered a mixed picture. By Troy Closson](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yOC9ueXJlZ2lvbi9ueWMtdGVzdC1zY29yZXMtcGFuZGVtaWMuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zNyZlbWM9ZWRpdF9ycl8yMDIyMTAwMSZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MzQyNCZubD1yYWNlJTJGcmVsYXRlZCZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA4NjgwJnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) [[Article Image] Tai Power Seeff for The New York Times](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TjaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yNS91cy9zdW5kYW5jZS1qaWhhZC1yZWhhYi1tZWctc21ha2VyLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [Sundance Liked Her Documentary on Terrorism, Until Muslim Critics Didn’t The film festival gave Meg Smaker’s “Jihad Rehab” a coveted spot in its 2022 lineup, but apologized after an outcry over her race and her approach. By Michael Powell](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TjaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8yNS91cy9zdW5kYW5jZS1qaWhhZC1yZWhhYi1tZWctc21ha2VyLmh0bWw_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzcmZW1jPWVkaXRfcnJfMjAyMjEwMDEmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzM0MjQmbmw9cmFjZSUyRnJlbGF0ZWQmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwODY4MCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYzTiHThj4SdYmVIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [[Article Image] Erin Schaff/The New York Times](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8zMC91cy9rZXRhbmppLWJyb3duLWphY2tzb24tc3VwcmVtZS1jb3VydC1pbnZlc3RpdHVyZS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [In a Stately Ceremony, Supreme Court Welcomes Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson The investiture of Justice Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the court, was attended by President Biden and other dignitaries. By Adam Liptak](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0TzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8zMC91cy9rZXRhbmppLWJyb3duLWphY2tzb24tc3VwcmVtZS1jb3VydC1pbnZlc3RpdHVyZS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM3JmVtYz1lZGl0X3JyXzIwMjIxMDAxJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTczNDI0Jm5sPXJhY2UlMkZyZWxhdGVkJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDg2ODAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmM04h04Y-EnWJlSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) [Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-universal-2) ADVERTISEMENT ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlGqLiP0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9NzI4Njk5JmxpPVJSJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1SUl8yMDIyMTAwMVcDbnl0QgpjNOIdOGPhJ1iZUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ Invite your friends. 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